Introduction
These notes outline the response of St Robert’s Church Pannal and All Saints’ Beckwithshaw including advice on the reception of Holy Communion. This response will be reviewed in the light of both experience and further guidance.
What to do if you have symptoms
If you believe you have symptoms of swine flu the advice is to seek diagnosis and any necessary medication or care from the National Flu Service or tel. 0800 1 513 100. One of the clearest indications appears to be a high temperature (in excess of 38ºC / 100ºF) If you do have flu you should not go out of the house and so will need a friend or family member (a ’flu friend’) to collect any medication and help with any necessary shopping trips. In the meantime you are advised to take paracetamol-based cold remedies to reduce fever and other symptoms, drink plenty of fluids and get lots of rest.
Regarding church, you should not attend while suffering symptoms of flu. Please do contact church by phone or e–mail to let us know you are ill. This will help us to pray for you, to monitor the situation and to ensure you do have a ’flu friend’ caring for you.
How you can be prepared
Everyone is advised to consider who might operate as a ’flu friend’. At church we are hoping to build up a data base of friends and next–of–kin for all our members who live alone. If you live alone, please let us know these details.
Attending Church
Meeting for fellowship and corporate worship is an important element of Christian life. If you are not suffering symptoms of flu then our advice would be to continue attending church services. The Department of Health recommends the following four actions for reducing the risk of infection
Always cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when coughing or sneezing.
Dispose of dirty tissues promptly and carefully.
Maintain good basic hygiene, for example wash hands frequently with soap and warm water to reduce the spread of the virus from your hands to face, or to other people.
Clean hard surfaces, such as door handles, frequently using a normal cleaning product.
To assist this we will be providing alcohol–based hand–washes by the church doors and bins for disposal of tissues as well as directing our cleaners to pay particular attention to cleaning door handles and other hard surfaces.
Sharing the Peace
Sharing the peace is an ancient practice indicating Christian fellowship within our corporate worship. We intend to continue this important sign of unity while exercising sensible caution. If you are suffering symptoms of flu then you should not be attending the service. If you consider the risk of contracting flu by hand to hand contact too great then you may wish to refrain from sharing the peace by keeping your hands by your side. Other members of the congregation should be sensitive to the wishes of anyone who does so and a friendly nod or smile may suffice.
You should not be selective in whom you are willing to share the peace with, the options must be either to shake hands or not.
Holy Communion
Holy Communion is a sacramental expression of our participation in the body of Christ. It is a sign of our relationship with God and one another. As such it is an extremely important aspect of our Christian life. However, this sharing in bread and wine, and most particularly a common cup, is the aspect of our worship which generates the greatest concern over the possibility of transferring infection. We propose to offer the following:
9.30 Parish Communion at Pannal
At this service the celebrant distributes the wafers and two assistants administer the chalice. One of these chalices will continue to be administered as usual while the other will be solely for ’intincting’. This is the practice by which the communicant holds a wafer and dips it into the wine rather than drinking from the chalice. If you wish to receive in the usual way please hold your hands out together. If you wish to intinct, please hold your right hand out to receive the wafer out of the celebrant’s hand. The second chalice will then be presented to you for you to dip the wafer into the wine. Care should be taken to avoid your fingers making contact with the wine in the chalice.
All other services
At all other services wafers will be intincted by the celebrant (by placing a small drop of wine on each wafer) before distribution. You will therefore receive both the bread & wine together.
High Risk Groups
Pregnant women and those with underlying medical conditions may have reason to be more circumspect than the rest of us. If you choose not to attend or take communion it would be helpful to let us know so we can better monitor the situation.
